Around the Campfire
by koyoote
Summary: A series of drabbles, mostly leading no where. Expect many to be speculations on life in the Western Air Temple. Various pairings, though I admit to favoritism. Surprisingly, most things involve humor, inspired by various things.
1. I'm Surrounded by Animals

Around the Campfire

Around the Campfire

_Scarlet Rose_

**I'm surrounded by Animals**

Avatar Aang, the world's last hope, the last airbender, and usually a very bright child despite this, was ready to pull his hair out. If he'd had any, anyway. It was just like any other day, and perhaps that's where it all started: the fact that their days were anything but routine anymore. The only routine thing about the group was the meals, thanks to Katara. Whoever felt available that day would go scout and hunt for food. Someone, usually Katara, would clean clothes and linens, and as the Avatar he would always train.

Some days, he'd train with Toph, then, at times, Haru would welcome himself to their training session and it would become a very heckling and stressful battle of wits (Toph) and multi-tasking (Haru). Contrary to what was popular belief, Haru had a knack for subtle and inventive earthbending moves. Which made Sokka comment on how he was subtle like a woman, but that's another story.

Other days he'd mix fire and water training in the morning and evening respectively. The worst of these days were when one of his teachers would observe the other's sessions - _"You're too easy on him!" "You're too aggressive!"_ - and more often than not Aang would observe their upcoming bending battle for pointers rather than stop them from fighting anymore. He'd learned that the two were always calmer after fighting, probably because they were always exhausted afterwards. Zuko never gave up, and Katara never gave him a break physically or verbally.

There were times where he could disappear with Teo, and the Duke to really have fun, but he was found again more often than not. In between training, his temple was filled with snide comments (Katara), sarcastic annoyances (Sokka), restrained fury (Zuko), and witty rebuttals (Toph) while the group attempted to plan a newer battle plan (insisted upon by the ex-Prince).

"_You stupid, war-mongering qinmiq!_"

"_Self-serving, feral, bakeneko!_"

It just wasn't worth it, he swore. The Avatar couldn't make them stop arguing to save their lives (which worried him, a lot), and as himself they would barely hear him (he's only twelve after all). So he'd stopped trying, he couldn't even understand what they were saying half the time, and he had a feeling neither knew what they were being called. They barely used the Common tongue when they got angry enough.

He glanced across the circle to where Sokka was watching the insults fly with vague interest. After so many days, it grew old and not amusing, even to the joker of the group. Toph sat as still as possible, and seemed to be restraining various amused emotions. Aang had an idea that the girl had taken language lessons and knew what they were saying.

It was Toph who stopped the fight this time, though Aang couldn't condone her reasons.

"Hey Hotman, what was it that you called Sweetness just a few minutes ago?" Zuko suddenly turned red, seeming to realize that he was arguing with Katara in public yet again. Katara was glaring whole heartedly (and uselessly) at the blind girl.

"Eh, kusekke?" _Wavy-haired._

"No, after that."

"Jingai?" _Foreigner._

"Uh-uh."

"Otokogirai?" _Man hater._

"No…"

"Neko?" _Cat._

"Yea!" she bounced, literally, to her feet, "It was like that, but more… Beke-neko… Buke-neko…" she mumbled, attempting to find the right pronunciation. Zuko's ears burned, but from sudden shame or something else no one was sure. Sokka watched him closely, not liking that his sister was being called names that he didn't know of. What if the jerk was calling his sister sailor-things?

"Bakeneko." _Monster cat._

"Yea, what's that mean?"

"Yea, Zuko. What's it mean?" Sokka harassed. Zuko looked mildly uncomfortable, but also relieved. The red embarrassment ebbed from his cheeks. The watchful Avatar thought that perhaps Toph already knew a lot of insulting language anyway.

"It's just a cat, but really wicked and vengeful." Strange looks were thrown his way for that definition.

"A cat? You mean, not a wolf-cat, or squirrel-cat, or cat-owl?" inquired Aang, for once actually interested to what the conversation had led to. It was similar to their discovery of Bosco the bear. Equal curiosity was expressed by the rest as well. Even Katara looked at him strangely. "_How is a wicked cat insulting?_" she thought. Zuko attempted to explain himself.

"They're evil cats. They walk on their hind legs and sometimes disguise themselves as humans," he started. The others looked intrigued, and against his self-preservation thoughts that wanted him to leave, he continued, "They can reanimate the dead by jumping over them and whisper orders in their ears with their whiskers. Or if they had a mistress or master they'll haunt them in their sleep. They grow larger than any other cat, over five feet long, and when they get older their tails spilt into two. We call those nekomata."

There was a moment of awkward silence. It wasn't every day they learned something about each other's cultures. Learning of the Fire Nation was rare, save for the Summer Solstice Festival. The moment turned into one of contemplation.

"Well, it's no wonder you guys would call each other that, you fight like real cats and dogs. It's strange how we got wolf-cats really…" Sokka thought out loud. Zuko blinked, and then glared at the waterbender across from him.

"You called me a dog?" Katara looked smug.

"A mongrel, really." The ex-Prince's eyebrow ticked in agitation, but he took a deep breathe and sat down, concluding their fight. Toph and Katara followed, but Sokka wasn't done contemplating.

"So Zuko's a dog, Katara's a cat, what are the rest of us?" It was a stupid question really, but one curious enough to hold Aang's attention.

"Well, I'm probably a mule, if anything." Toph answered first.

"A mule?"

"Yea, before there were ostrich-horses there were mules. Bad breeding that. Donkeys and horses didn't make good babies, but they were pretty kickass as I was told." Toph explained. Sokka look sated for a moment, but questioned once more.

"So what am I?" There was a look of deep concentration on Toph's face as she looked in Sokka's general direction. She couldn't miss him because they were sitting next to each other.

"A wolf I guess…" she started, "That's an animal from your ice right? And on your helmet?" Sokka looked flattered for a moment. Wolves were long extinct and sacred to their culture. At least in the south, the north favored the local reindeer legends. Aang asked his animal next. Toph was now their unofficial inner-animal guru, along with nickname-maker.

"Birds. Some kinda bird, cause you're really flighty sometimes."

"Hey, you could be like that one bird," Sokka bit his lip and furrowed his eyebrows. For the life of him, he couldn't think of the name, "You know, it's rare now… Huge gold wings, real gentle and keeps coming back to life…" The turnings in Aang's head clicked suddenly. That was a bird he knew of, they migrated to the temples every spring for their chicks.

"You mean the phoenix!" he exclaimed. The smile stretched across his face, but Zuko looked at him sharply. The smile slowly faded as he noticed his teacher's grim look.

"There's only a few left now. I know there were a lot a hundred years ago, but cities and humans took away a lot of their habitats in the Fire Nation." His sudden excitement about the past faded. A silence settled around their places, weighing down the map in the center of their circle despite the eased wind.

"So, a wolf, mule, dog, cat, and a phoenix," Sokka concluded looking up to the ceiling depicting various bison of the temple. Attention drew to him as he suddenly laughed, "Hey Hotman, you are _so_ not going to live this down." Zuko watched him apathetically.

"We're not actually animals, moron. I'm sorry you couldn't understand that, but you'll get it soon enough," he mocked, tilting his head back and looking down his nose at the warrior in faked seriousness. Toph giggled, listening with amusement.

"You little…" the blue-eyed fighter started, his upper lip rising in a sneering gesture, showing his teeth. The blind earthbender felt the adrenaline rush of Sokka's vibrations and knew he wanted to knock the smirk off Zuko's face (jerk had it coming). But for the moment, Zuko was in her favor, so she rescued him, in her own way.

"Hotman! Time to make with the piggyback," she said loudly. Sokka halted and Zuko looked displeased. Katara and Aang watched with vague amusement. Toph was playing referee.

"Your feet are healed, I don't know why you-"

"Come on, before I slam you into another wall."

Grudgingly, Zuko shifted to kneel and turned his back to the girl. By now Sokka was irritated again, but was mildly satisfied by seeing Zuko be Toph's ostrich-horse. When the firebender hoisted her up and asked her where she wanted to go, Toph said only one thing.

"What a good-boy!" and vigorously scratched the top of his head, tangling his hair. Zuko growled as he heard the sudden howling laughter from Sokka. The other two giggled noisily. Toph only smirked (it was Sokka she had a crush on after all), and Zuko looked at her over his shoulder.

"You and I are gonna have a _long_ talk about this."

"We'll fight later, dog-boy," she said, gripping his shirt and digging her heels into his sides in a "move" gesture. He automatically started walking and she praised herself for training him so well.

"For now, snack time. I want something sweet, and I think we could find you a _bone_ somewhere!"

Howling laughter chased them down the halls as they headed for their make-shift kitchen.


	2. Follow the Breadcrumbs

Around the Campfire

Around the Campfire

_Scarlet Rose_

**Following the Breadcrumbs**

It had taken them too long to get into the catacombs underground. Time was running short on the eclipse. It was when they'd "asked" for directions that she'd felt the slowly walking footsteps. Almost as light as Aang's but with far more confidence in the step. The being was shuffling along with a knowing easy gait that went against his rapidly beating heart.

Even as Aang and Sokka ran off in the direction given, Toph held onto the footsteps instinctively. They were familiar. As they came to another corridor passing, she stopped forcing her companions to as well.

She watched silently as the footsteps came closer to the adjoining corridor. The boys took her example and watched hesitantly and silently. Suddenly, they heard a scuff of a foot against rock flooring. Toph knew that the person had paused and held up one finger for quiet, and listened harder to the heartbeat. If she shifted he may hear, and he may not be seen.

But Toph felt another light as air footfall and the boys saw pale fingers lightly grip the red rock. There was a flash of dark hair and then he disappeared. Toph shouted and ran after him, the boy's following swiftly. They may not have heard it, but the boy had slipped off and silently sprinted away.

Unfortunately for him, there was no running from an earthbender underground. She stopped him short with a large wall blocking off the next corridor. They caught up quickly, facing the back of their victim of sorts. He was tall, taller than Sokka, with slightly long black hair. He didn't wear armor, but something more casual in darker red colors.

The man purposely twisted the right side of his face to them.

"Zuko," Aang stated.

"Avatar." The Prince turned towards them fully, his glazed amber eyes looking at them dispassionately. Sokka pressed the advantage.

"Where's the Fire Lord?" he spat. Zuko tilted his head before nodding at the earthbender.

"Straight ahead, second corridor down turn left, next immediate turn is right, there's a secret passageway that goes downstairs to where he actually is."

Shock held them still for a moment, Aang and Sokka uncertainly glanced at each other and watched their personal lie detector. She nodded that it was the truth, but kept an eye on his general area.

"Why would you help us?" Aang questioned, still unsure after being forced to fight him off under the catacombs of Ba Sing Se. Zuko's stare sent a shiver down his spine. It was so… Blank, it was eerie to see on his usually furious face.

"You're running out of time," he said, dismissing the Avatar all together. Sokka grit his teeth before turning his back on the Prince. He started to run, and Toph followed, putting the Fire Prince's word to good faith.

Aang stood still the longest, staring at him with penetrating hazel eyes. Finally, the older male's brow furrowed as he stared back, disliking the interrogation he seemed to be being forced through.

At that single motion, the airbender smiled. Zuko was still Zuko; he's just made a better decision. With his confirmation, the Avatar flew off, careful not to disturb the Prince with his air currents and catch up to his companions. Zuko watched him leave with a frown.

If his father was to be distracted with the Avatar's crew, minus wherever the water witch was, then he should not bother him with his little betrayal. But Azula must still be expecting someone. The Dai Li would be difficult, but perhaps he could demand a one on one match with his sister once and for all.

His destination decided, he headed off towards the fake throne, where the Avatar's group would've met with a rather distracting Fire Princess that would've delayed their mission.


	3. Leaving a Conversation to Dry

Around the Campfire

_Scarlet Rose_

**Leaving a Conversation to Dry**

Cursing was not a common habit, nor hobby of Katara's. But when you live in a large, rather dirty temple, with a bunch of physically active training people, and several children, it's something that she picked up while doing chores.

Laundry, for example. Washing clothes and hanging them to dry used to be relaxing. It used to let her use her bending at her leisure and then enjoy the breeze while hanging them. In the Western Air Temple, hanging under a cliff side, there was little wind to be enjoyed and the humidity kept the clothes damp longer, forcing her to have to carefully wring the water from the clothes, hoping not to harm the fibers.

Laundry was not relaxing. It was tiring, boring, frustrating; it was a chore. And Katara cursed the fact that not a single other person would help her with this labor. Their party consisted of eight people, which she now considered to be children. Every single one of them were spoiled brats.

But when she would finish the laundry, she would return, make lunch, and then enjoy the compliments and thanks for the meal. With a sigh, she wringed the water from yet another shirt.

"That'll shrink if you do that."

Water turned to ice in an instant at the remark. Hearing the hesitant shift backwards, Katara let the solid turn to liquid then tossed it over the edge. Zuko sighed with relief, and then came forward. She watched him with cool eyes as he took a seat next to the pile of laundry she had decided could be cleaned tomorrow.

As she carefully dried the clothing, careful to not wring it again, Zuko started scrubbing articles of clothing in soapy water. It was obvious that he had finished working with Aang. Somewhere in the temple it was a little noisier, and he only wore his outer vest that hung around him in a tired fashion.

There was a long moment of silence as they proceeded through their tasks. Katara did not say a word of thanks, feeling that perhaps he had an ulterior motive for this. He hadn't really volunteered to do chores before. Except to make tea or wash dishes; he usually kept to himself.

"Aang told me why he was afraid to firebend before." Ah, there it is. He wanted to talk. And about something that happened so long ago too… Perhaps Aang was still concerned? Shouldn't Aang be talking to her if he was concerned?

"Yes, he burned me, but then I found out about my healing powers. So it was a good thing." Defensive much? Okay, so it wasn't a good thing, it hurt like hell and it took awhile before she could train with Yugoda and fully understand it. It took her even longer to learn to enjoy it and not favor her fighting skills completely.

"He also told me about what happened before the invasion," he added, trying to hint to where this conversation was going. The waterbender stared at him blankly before realizing the connection between Aang, fear, and the invasion. Shit. Katara didn't speak, she didn't dare to. What had Aang said? "He's worried."

Katara stopped drying the clothing. Zuko followed suit. Her stare was confused, and very much suspicious. His was almost accusatory, but calm. Her fists clenched, waiting for him to continue. This was really none of his business-

"He's worried because you haven't acknowledged him. And he says what you think will force him to make a really big decision." And she was confused again.

"What decision?" The Fire Prince looked back down at the clothing in his hands, one of Aang's robes.

"He didn't say." His expression said it all. He was worried about what this decision could be, whether or not it meant that he would fight or flee. Did the Avatar need her love and support to fight the Fire Lord, or would he only go fight, possibly to the death, if she refused him? If she did accept him, would he try to run away with her to "live happily ever after"? Katara's heart started to beat faster. She knew what Zuko meant, and it left her concerned as well.

Zuko started working again, leaving more clean wet clothes for her to start drying. The motions became repetitive and calming, but didn't completely sooth her mind. Biting her lip, she carefully tried to consider her options and her real feelings. Was there ever a right answer?

"For what it's worth," the boy started again. She let her attention fall on him without suspicion this time. She was too concerned with her possible conversation with the Avatar to worry about her petty hatred, "I think you should tell him the truth, no matter what it may cause him to do."

If you love him, tell him.

If you don't love him, it'll be okay.

"It'll only hurt the both of you to lie."

If you don't tell him you love him, you may lose him. He'll move on.

If you don't tell him you don't love him, you'll only hurt him later. Or if you fake it, you'll hurt yourself.

Zuko finished with the pile of clothing, then left. The soapy water was left for another day, and the sopping mess of clothes for her to dry.

She left the dry clothes unfolded in a pile, to get wrinkled until she came back to them. After a few minutes, she too left, leaving the wet clothes to dry on wires and clothespins. But because of the humidity they would not dry tonight, nor the next day.

It would take them a long while to finish drying, unless she came back to finish the job on her own.


	4. The Answer

Around the Campfire

_Scarlet Rose_

**The Answer**

There was a strange gnawing sensation in the pit of his stomach. It had started at first when he saw Katara back down from harming her mother's murderer. Then it prolonged on the way back to where they'd left Appa. Still, the feeling would not leave, and the ex-Prince could not figure out the reason why it didn't. There was no fact or question he could think of that might relieve this warning, so he busied himself with returning the great sky beast back to Aang, and then returning with everyone back for Katara.

She hadn't left from her downtrodden position since he'd left her. When he had told her he was going, she didn't respond, but he knew his abandoned vacation home was safe for the moment. Aang was almost immediately at her side and the feeling increased.

Zuko couldn't understand why the feeling of dread peaked when he saw the monk. And the girl. And the Water Tribe warrior. And the little blind earthbender. And the Kyoshi warrior.

That was when it came to him. The 'why' for his anxiety was right in front of his face. None of these people, his new companions, were capable of murder. And while one might find this reassuring, he found it grotesquely agitating. Sokka could not free him of the guard at the Boiling Rock he'd been withholding for him, nor take advantage of their lack of audience to do away with her. Suki hadn't fatally harmed anyone that he'd seen. Toph had great strength, but he doubted anyone her age was mature enough to kill someone else on purpose. Katara had already proven that she, blinded by rage that she was, was incapable of murder.

And the Avatar's a monk.

While once Zuko had known that it was the Avatar's destiny to destroy his father, it felt now that it was a hopeless venture if the boy could not kill. His father would not back down if he was merely humiliated. Capture was inconceivable because of such high support he had with the people and the nobles. The only way to finish the job, the journey, was to kill his father.

Zuko wondered then, as Katara forgave him, if _he_ would be capable of killing his father. Would Katara's forgiveness of him be for naught if she were killed in the end? Simply because the monk refused to take a life, or that the abused son of a tyrant couldn't right things himself?

These weren't questions he could hold for long without seriously considering insanity.

"You were right about Katara," he started, staring after the girl, "Violence wasn't the answer."

Predictably, his pupil replied, "Violence is never the answer."

"Then I have one question for you," he turned, staring the younger boy down hard in the eyes, "What are you going to do when you face my father?"

The question for all times. What was a monk going to do against an insane tyrant bent on destroying his race? Aang's eyes started to become heavy, eye lids dripped with doubt. Zuko knew then that even the Avatar, a twelve year old master of the elements, did not truly have an answer.

And the dread found purchase on his heart.


	5. The Shadows are Cold

The Shadows are Cold

_Scarlet Rose_

The silence of the room was foreboding. Though Zuko couldn't begin to wonder why, the decision was already made. Over. Done. With a show of confidence unfelt, the firebender crossed the bedroom to open the curtains to the balcony beyond. She had an ocean view, this he made sure of. It was a place he could not follow, if she would flee. Noticing that the doors were locked, he undid it absently, but hesitated in opening them. The great mass of water felt so daunting; to free her to its power was… It hurt. So damn much.

_I close both locks below the window  
I close both blinds and turn away  
_

Golden eyes fell to the floor without seeing before he turned from the stunningly bright view. Shadows kept to the corners of the room, hiding her face from sight. The shadows would be gone by mid-morning, the crisp light unable to fully reach the far wall for the moment.

He took advantage of the darkness, shifting into it like it was his natural state of being. His gait was smooth, silent, and steady; approaching the beauty he was loath to let go of. A strong pale hand rose out of instinct to caress her cheek, but resisted. Whether it was instinct or something else, he suddenly knew her to be awake. As the offending hand returned to his side it flexed viciously into a fist, unable to physically control his frustration. His forehead knit together in anxious aggravation, desiring to forbid her from leaving him.

But his anger stilled at the sign of her pseudo-peaceful face. How could he not respect her wishes? She was not his to own, and so their goodbye was imminent. Despite his breaking heart.

_Sometimes solutions aren't so simple  
Sometimes goodbye's the only way  
_

He did not think that he would see her off at the ship that afternoon. She left with the tide, with her brother and the Avatar. The little earthbender would stay; she had made it clear where she knew Katara's heart lay. Toph knew what the waterbender and Avatar had no clue of and was prepared to stay with Zuko, for emotional support, she claimed. Though he wondered if she'd been looking for an excuse not to go home.

_And the sun will set for you  
The sun will set for you  
_

The heartache set in deep. Seeing his love impersonating sleep to ignore him, to wish to leave him a caged bird in the title of Fire Lord, brought him to his knees. The fluttering red cloth seemed to weigh him down, no longer suiting his tall stature but overwhelming him as a broken man.

_And the shadow of the day  
Will embrace the world in grey  
_

Somewhere inside his heart the knowledge of Mai waiting in the shadows to devour him gnawed on his conscience. Mai loved him, earnestly and honestly. Yet he could not return it, his heart was not his own to give to her for her devotion all these years.

_And the sun will set for you  
_

His heart, his love, could not keep the girl still. Perhaps it, indeed, set her running.

_In cards and flowers on your window  
__Your friends all plead for you to stay  
_

Gifts of friendship were stockpiled in her room. From soldiers healed by her magical fingertips, to palace servants, to Toph and Iroh. He did not give her gifts. Zuko had not showered them upon her when he courted her either, knowing that they would only make the situation more awkward. His courtship must have seemed startling to her, but he felt a slow and steady progression of love in his body and soul for her. He'd slowly expressed interest through dueling and walks around the market and palace.

Then rumors had spread. Some villagers and servants observed them and wondered like matchmaking gossips. The very idea seemed to startle her away like a frightened rabbit. She'd insisted on not being seen together to quell the rumors and Zuko had deadpanned an answer of indifference to the rumors. They were only rumors of his true intentions, after all.

_Sometimes beginnings aren't so simple  
Sometimes goodbye's the only way  
_

Katara started looking to board the next ship home, to the South, that night.

_And the sun will set for you  
The sun will set for you  
_

She had troubled her companions, but hurt him deeply. Stabbing his newly blooming love like it was an animal.

_And the shadow of the day  
Will embrace the world in grey  
_

Of course, Mai had been there to pick of the pieces. Her steady gray eyes and unyielding stature proved that she was probably the better choice as a wife of the Fire Lord. If he were to marry her, he would be the weaker partner, yearning for a girl not his own.

_And the sun will set for you  
_

His heart ached as if he was losing a piece of it, and in a way he had. Zuko would've given anything for the perfect little waterbender, even his heritage and title. The afternoon tide would carry a sliver of his soul away as easily as he had given it to the girl.

The firebender's heart would forever belong to the sea.

_And the shadow of the day  
Will embrace the world in grey  
_

Unless he managed to retrieve the sliver and become whole again.

_And the sun will set for you  
_

But the price was too high. Enslaving her… Killing her…

Though they came to mind out of desperation there was no desire to carry out the action.

_And the shadow of the day  
Will embrace the world in grey  
_

He would rather carry the pain of heartbreak and an unrequited love than make her suffer in any way. Resting his forehead across her bed sheets, his breathing evened, and he awaited sleep to engulf him. His heart could not take the image his eyes imagined as she left the palace without looking back.

_And the sun will set for you_

Fire Lord Zuko awoke in mid-afternoon to nothing more than the sound of the muscle in his chest to cease beating for a moment. The bed was empty and he was alone. Though the sun was bright and filled every corner of the room, revealing its great beauty, he felt none of it. The heat could not penetrate his clothes or skin, hair or eyes.

He was cold.


End file.
